System and apparatus for elevating and lowering oil well piping



Dec. 6, 1932. Q JR 1,889,808

SYSTEM AND APPARATUS FOR ELEVATING AND LOWERING OIL WELL PIPING Filed Au 14, 1950 2 -Sheet 1 n z:\

IN A :i i 35 JKJMGMZQJI? 6, 1932. I v M. J. MCNULTY, JR 1,839,803

SYSTEM AND APPARATUS FOR ELEVATING AND L OWERING OIL WELL PIPING Filed Aug. 14. 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 gwoevrto c .MJMCMZZy, E

Patented Dec. 6, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE MARTIN J. MCNULTY, JR, OF TULSA, OKLAHOMA SYSTEM AND APPARATUS roa ELEVATING AND LOWERING OIL WEL mriive Application filed August 14, 1930. Serial No. 475,290. v

The invention further comprises means for supporting the tubes or casings within the well upon which the collars or enlarged portions of the shaft or casing are seated. Means is also provided for forcing a pair of pivoted pawls into engagement with the well tubing or casing being supported and said means comprises wedgemembers adapted to be moved transversely relative tothe holding collar or supporting clamp for moving the pivoted pawls and the vertical teeth into engagement with the well tubing or casing. Conventional means is used for raising an upper section or portion of thewell casing or tubing whereby it may be held by the clamping member by means of one of the spaced collars resting upon the holding clamp whereby a section may be removed which has thus been elevated and the hoisting mechanism lowered into position relative to the tube or well casing for raising another section of the well tubing or casing, and the invention 39 further comprises a novel form of holding clamp adapted tobe removably embedded in the rotary table which may be raised with the well tubing or casing when the same is being M hoisted out of the well through the rotary table after which the holding clamp may be separated and placed beneath another holding collar or enlarged portion of the well tubing or casing whereby it will be seated as before. This cycle of operation is carried 40 out until the entire length of well tubing or casing has been removed from the well for the purpose of repairing the bit or drill on the end of the well tubing or casing or for any other purpose a desired.

Heretofore, it has been common practiceto support well tubing and casing "in an oil, water or gas well by providing a separable clamping block with vertically extending wedges having vertical threads whereby the weight of the well tubing or casing causes the vertically threaded wedge member to tightly engage the well tubing or casing and hold the same in position relative to the separable clamp and rotary table. This form of device is known in theart as a well slip and usually consists ofwe'dge-shaped members vertically arranged between bevel surfaces of theseparable clamp and having vertical threads for clamping the well tubing or casing. Such practice is objectionable, on account of the vertical threads of the wedge members cut.- ting into the well tubing or casing due to the fact that the weight of the well tubing 0r casing is so great that the wedge members are caused to puncture the well tubing and casing and cause great damage to the same. i The above objections and disadvantages are overcome by providing a device embodying this invention, whereby the weight of the lengthy well tubing or casing is not supported by the slip or wedge members but is supported by a collar rigidly secured or removably secured tot-he well tubing or casing at spaced intervals. Wedge members are depended upon which extend transversely relativeto the axis of the separable clamp for holding the well tubing or casing relative to the rotary table when it is desired to rotate thewell tubing or casing. a 1

Other objects and advantages of the invention, will become apparent during the course of the following description, forming a part of this specification and in which,

Figure 1 is a vertical. elevation illustrating a diagrammatic arrangement of the well tubing or casing hoisting mechanism;

Figure 2 is partly a .side elevation and partly a vertical cross-sectional view on lines 22 of Figure 5 illustrating the preferred formof two-part supporting clamp asarranged about-a joint or collar of the well tubing creasing; l c

Figure 3 is an enlarged vertical section illustrating the preferred-form of welltube5 ing or casing employed for accomplishing the desired results;

Figure 4 is a vertical cross-sectional View similar to Figure 2 illustrating the twopart supporting clamp arranged below one of the 1-00 well casing joints for supporting the sections of well tubing or casing;

Figure 5 is a top elevation of the modified form of invention illustrating the manner in which the two part clamp is secured to geth-er;

Figure 6 is a side elevation of the above illustrating the separable joint between the two sections of the separable clamp; V a

Figure 7 is a transverse cross-sectional view of the two-part supporting clamp, illustrating thepivot-ed pawl carried therein and the manner of forcing the same into engage ment with the well tubing or casing for preventing rotation of the same.

' In the drawings, the r ference character A joined 1 designates a rotary table, well known in the art of rotary well drilling and as-illustrated in F igure 1, the rotary table A is provided with a squared recess for receiving a supj porting bloch B. The supporting biock B is removable from the rotary table'A and it con stitutes a conventional form of supporting block used in connection with rotary well drilling. The supporting block B is provided with a circular recess 5 for receiving a two part clamp 6 and a central opening 7 is also formed in the supporting block B and is of less diameter than the circular recess 5. In Figure 2, the supporting block Bis-not provided with a circular opening and the two part clamp 6 has its lower edges resting upon the upper surface of the supporting block B. It will also be noted that the supporting block 6' illustrated in Figure 2 is provided with an enlarged opening 39 whereby the supporting collar 24 may be grasped by the pivoted pawls 16. The construction illustrated in Figures 1, 2, 4, 5, 6 and 7 comprises semi-circular portions 8 having complementary faces 9, one of which is provided with an apertured lug 10 having a drilled aperture 11 while the opposite complementary face 9 is provided with a bifurcated portion 12 adapted to receive the lug 10 on the opposite complementary face of the semicircular member 8. The bifurcated portion 12 is also drilled as at 13, whereby retaining bolts 14 may be passed through the drilled openings 11 and '13 for holding the semicircular sections 8' in position as illustrated in Figures 1, 2, and 1 to 7 inclusive. ,Each of the semi-circular members 8 is provided with a cut-out portion 15 adapted to house a pivoted pawl 16 held in place by a vertical pin 17, whilean insert 18 having a flat surface 19 isinserted within the housing or cut away portion 15 for providing a sliding face for a wedge member 20 mounted on the end of an operating rod 21. It will be noted that one face of the wedge 20 engages the plane or flat surface 19 of the insert 18, while the opposite face of the wedge 20 engages corresponding surface 22- formedon'the pawl 16. When the two part clamps 6 and 6- are in place as illustrated in Figures 1, 2 and 4:, the retaining bolts 14 pass through the drilled openings 11 and 1.3 of the two part clamp sections 8 and also extend downwardly into corresponding drilled openings 17 in block B, for preventing rotary motion of the two part clamp 6 or 6'. It is to be understood, that the form ofsupporting block illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, is identical with the supporting block 6 illustrated in Figures 4: to? inclusive with the exception that the form illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 is provided with an enlarged opening 39 whereby the supporting collar 24 may be gripped between the pivoted pawls 16 and the lowermost portion of the supporting collar will be supported by the extended areas of each half section 8; It is preferred to force the pivoted pawls 16 against the collar 24- for preventing rotation of the well tubing or casing, due to the fact that the collar 24 or joint is thicker than the well tubing or casing and will withstand a greater pressure exerted by the wedgeniembers 20. In Figure 1, the well tubing or casing 23 extends through the table A, supporting block B and two part clamp 6 and is held against rotation by the pivoted pawls 16 engaging the well tubing section 23 and the weight of the well tubing or casing 23 is supported by the collar 24: having its lower portion 25 seated upon the upper portion of the two part clamping member 6. The usual tool joint 26 is secured to the upper portion of the well tubing 23 or a section thereof extending from the supporting collar 24: and the tool joint or collar 26 is illustrated in Figures 1, 2 and 4 as held above a two part hoisting clamp 27, supported from a hoisting shackle hook 28 as bymeans of bails 29. The two part clamping 'member 27, hoisting hook 28 and bail 29 constitute a hoisting mechanism for removing well tubingand casing from wells of a conventional form and are generally knownin the art and do not constitute a part'of this invention. 7

In Figure 3, is illustrated ,a' section of the well tubing23 in cross-section, showing the collar 24 as havingfemale threads 30 for receiving male threads 31 ofan adjacent section of well tubing 23. As illustrated in the enlarged cross-sectional'view, in Figure 3, the well casing or tubing 23 is provided at its upper end with an enlarged collar 26 having female threads 33 for receivingIthe male v,

threads 34 of'a tool joint 35 which is provided with female threads 36' for receiving the male threads 37 of a tube section 38.

For a consideration of the operation of the invention, attention 15 directed to Figure 1, I

supporting clamp 6. After a certain number of well tubing sections 23 have been raised, the two part hoisting clamp 27 is removed and lowered into position below the first supporting collar 24 above the two part supporting clamp 6 whereupon the upper-sections 23 of the well tubing or casing may be held by a wrench while the rotary table A is rotated in a manner to unthread the sections of tubing above the first supporting collar from the two part supporting clamp 6.

After the sections of well tubing or casing 23 are removed in the above manner, the hoist.- ing clamp 27 is again raised which causes the two part supporting clamp 6 to be simultaneously raised whereupon the same may be separated and placed under a supporting collar 2-1 which is in position above the rotary table A. The hoisting two part clamp 27 is then lowered in order that the weight of the well tubing casing or sections 23 will be supported by the two part supporting clamp 6' whereu on the above cycle of operation is repeatedly carried out until the entire length of well tubing or casing is removed from the well.

By a reversal of the above operation, the respective well tubing sections 23 connected by the collars 24 may be lowered into the well in an easy and quick fashion.

It is to be understood that the form of the invention herewith shown and described, is to be taken as a preferred embodiment of the same and that various changes in the shape, size and arrangement of parts may be re- 1 sorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the sub-j oined claims.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is 1. A well tubing or casing mechanism of the character described, comprising a. two part separable clamping and supporting member adapted to be carried by arotary well drilling table, anchoring pins passing through the two part clamping and supporting memher for holding the sections of the two part clamp in place as well as holding the same against rotation upon the rotary well drilling carried in each section of the two part clamping member adapted to move horizontally, a wedge member for forcing the pivoted pawl centrally relative to the two part clamping member, and the complementary faces of both sections of the two part supporting clamp defining an opening for receivinga well tubing or casing. V

3. Hoisting means for a well tubing or casing, wherein the tubing or casing is provided with external collars, said hoisting means comprising a two part separable clamp with which a collar is adapted to be supportingly engaged,- and through which clamp the tubing or casing extends, the op osed faces of the clamp parts being recessed? a pivot pawl in each recess for binding engagement with the tubing or casing and a wedge member engageable with each pawlfor moving the sameinto operative position;

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

MARTIN J. MoNULTY, JR.

table, a central opening through the two part clamping member for receiving a well tubing or casing, said well tubing or casing having a series of spaced supporting collars adapted to be seated upon the two part clamping member and a pivoted pawl carried by each section of the two part clamp adapted to move in a plane at right angles to the'longitudinal axis of the well tubing or casing for engaging and holding the same against rotation.

2. A well tubing or casing mechanism of the character described, comprising a two part supporting clamp adapted to be-supported upon a rotary well drilling table and adapted to be secured thereto against rotation, shoulders on the clamp for the support of a well tubing or casing collara pivoted pawl 

